The Crystal Cathedral has confirmed that it fired three relatives of the Rev. Robert Schuller, the megachurch’s founder, on Tuesday.
The decision was a part of an effort to revamp the church’s weekly television show, the Hour of Power.
The broadcast once reached millions of people, but both donations and viewers have been on the decline.
Schuller’s daughter, Gretcher Penner, producer of the Hour of Power, and her husband Jim Penner, the show’s executive producer, were both dismissed.
Jim Coleman, husband of Senior Pastor Sheila Schuller Coleman, Schuller’s other son-in-law, also lost his job as director of creative services.
“Organizational changes affecting ministry leaders are never easy to make, especially when it involves individuals who have devoted their lives to this ministry and have served with great distinction,” John Charles, president of the Crystal Cathedral Ministries, said in a statement.
“This was a very difficult decision the Crystal Cathedral Ministries board of directors prayerfully deemed was necessary in order to make a change in direction for the Hour of Power and reverse recent declining donations and viewership,” he said.
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, Calif., recently purchased the property after the ministry declared bankruptcy.
